Several major supermarkets have refused to stock Easter eggs which feature pictures of the cross and a leaflet explaining the resurrection.
According to The Meaningful Chocolate Company, ASDA has never stocked their eggs, while Sainsbury’s and the Co-op have dropped them after selling them last year.
One supermarket is even reported to have asked the company what Easter has to do with the church.
Anti-Christian
The move has been criticised by two leading figures in the Church of England and described as “anti-Christian” by the head of The Meaningful Chocolate Company.
Former Archbishop Lord Carey said that he was saddened by the decision and the fact that most supermarkets stock eggs with no reference to Easter at all.
He said: “These Easter eggs that have nothing to do with Easter, all they are trying to do is get more money out of people. They have no meaning. I think it shows ignorance on the part of these supermarkets.
Undermining Easter
“By not offering an alternative to secular Easter eggs they are actually undermining the real message of Easter. It saddens me because we are living in a land that is completely losing contact with its religious roots and is out of touch with the Christian message.”
The Archbishop of York, John Sentamu, urged Sainsbury’s, ASDA and the Co-op to sell the eggs and praised the fact that a million have been sold already.
David Marshall, the head of The Meaningful Chocolate Company, said that supermarkets appear ‘biased’.
Politically incorrect
He said: “We do wonder at times if there is an anti-Christian agenda from some of our supermarkets who just keep turning it down.
“It is as if some feel Christianity is politically incorrect or the Easter story, which mentions Jesus, might put people off.
“One buyer asked us what Easter had got to do with the Church, while another simply said, ‘I don’t think this is a credible product’ and asked us to leave.”
Both Sainsbury’s and the Co-op cite poor sales of the eggs in previous years as their reason for not selling them this year. ASDA claims that it has not been approached.